Have You Seen This Wizard?
by femalepadfoot
Summary: Sirius Black escapes Azkaban. Remus Lupin fears for his life as his friend, who has killed everyone else that helped him, is on the run. This is the story of the life of Sirius after his escape and until his death.
1. Padfoot's Lament

((These characters belong to J.K. Rowling. Not I, said the goose.))

The thin cigarette hung from his long fingers naturally. Gray eyes fixed on the wall in front of him. Revenge. The only thing he could envision. His mind was racing, as usual. When he actually thought. Thought about him. About them. About the Dark Lord. Sometimes it seemed like he didn't think at all. Long days would go by of nothing and blankness where he couldn't remember even getting up from his sack on the floor. No consolation was found in any part of his cell. Except his cigarette. It was the last one from a pack he'd had for years. The very last one and he meant to savor it. He put it out, savoring the misty feel of the tobacco that swirled through his head and barely calmed the headache that raged behind his eyes.

Sirius Orion Black. Sitting in a jail cell, just like his mother used to say. _I hope you're happy, mum. Look at me now. Sitting here in a cell. Your house rotting, and the heir of the Black family dying in Azkaban. I bet you're cackling at me this very moment, old hag. _

He pulled out the picture. The last one he was left with. He'd smuggled it in. He, James, Remus and _him. _Peter fucking Pettigrew. _I'll kill that bastard. I swear to Merlin. He'll die by my hand. How dare he?_

The white hot fury that was born of the pits of hell coursed through the worn man. He was young. Not over thirty-five, but worn like a sixty-year-old. His dark hair had grown long. Longer than he liked over his time in Azkaban. No haircut was allowed the inmates. No luxuries of outside life. Sirius hadn't seen another human in years. Only the arm that shoved food in his little box. He ate. Getting no consolation from the gruel he was fed, and not having the courage to starve himself.

Laying back on the bed, the dark-haired man sighed. This was life. Life was thoughts and the moans of the Dementors. Sometimes they'd come very close to the cell to torment him. Suck the very life out of the nearly lifeless room.

They zoomed around the inside of Azkaban as well as the outside, which was completely surrounded by water. Not a single piece of land for miles and miles. Only way out was through muggle boat.

Or in a body bag.

The only thing left to do was remember. Remember the hatred. Feed off it. Wait for the day. The day in which Sirius Black would actually kill Peter Pettigrew.

The day he had allegedly, but not really, killed the rat, had been seared into the man's mind for eternity. He couldn't forget. The streetlights of the bar district, with the muggles stumbling around them, thinking of it only as a fight between two drunks. Sirius had stepped forward and called his name. Peter turned around, nervous and afraid of the other man. He asked him how he could do it. Let them die. Their friends. Lily and James Potter. Their little son, Sirius' godson, lived by chance. The first person to live through the Avada Kadavra curse. Nonetheless, he had betrayed them. The dirty rat. Sirius held his wand high, ready to blast him to smithereens. Nobody treated James Potter like that and got away with it. Especially not with Sirius Black around. James had been the only person to give him a chance. He had been his savior. The one to get him from his shitty home live, and into his own which was loving and warm.

Sirius began to breathe the very curse that had been done on his friends. It would have been so easy. He could be in Azkaban for actually doing it. The anger felt like a hot poker being shoved into his temples. His pulse quickened and the rage quadrupled. The dull ache that had tormented him before began to intensify into a stabbing pain as the figurative poker shoved itself deeper and deeper into his skull. His blood must have been boiling. The cold street seemed to be five hundred degrees.

That's when the fear left the rat's face. Sirius had no idea what he was going to do next, but he knew it was bad. Suddenly, there was a loud crack and he had vanished, the muggles around left as witness. Sirius watched the spot where he had been standing to see a rat scurry away leaving a bloodied finger on the ground. By the time he thought to chase him down, he was already gone. Oh how he hated that putrid little rodent. He'd get him. Oh, he'd get him good. Sirius was here, suffering for not only supposedly giving away the secret of his best friend's hiding place, but for killing someone he didn't even get the satisfaction of killing. Of course, he was blamed for it. He'd had his wand out.

Sirius had tried to run. Tried to get to Remus to tell him of it. To try and make his last friend in the world believe that he hadn't committed the crimes he was accused of.

He stood outside the door of the werewolf's house. As if things couldn't get any worse, it started raining. He pounded as hard as he could, but there was no answer for a long time. Finally, the door opened, the chain keeping it from opening any farther and a tearstained, blue eye peeped at the drenched man from the other side.

"Sirius…" He mumbled. "What are you doing here? The authorities, they're looking for you…"

"I didn't do it, Remus. You know I didn't do a damn thing. It was Pettigrew… I swear to you, Moony. You've got to believe me." Sirius wrapped his arms around himself trying to keep the little warmth he had in despite his soaked clothing.

Remus shook his head. "I can't believe that, Sirius. I'm sorry. I've owled them."

"Owled who?" It was that moment that the loud cracks of many wizards made Sirius realize who he had owled. The ministry of magic. "R-remus… You know me. You know I wouldn't do such a thing."

"No, I don't, Sirius. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Padfoot." Remus started to shut the door, but Sirius wedged his foot in it.

"Dammit, Moony! You know me! You know I didn't do it! Merlin! I loved them! They were like my family. You know! In your heart, you know I'm not lying." The members of the ministry were closing in. Sirius could feel it. The sandy blonde on the other side kept trying to push his foot out of the way of the door, but he refused to budge. "Moony! Please just listen! They changed the secret keeper at the last minute to Wormtail. He was the secret keeper. He told He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. I promise you. I didn't kill him either. He made it look like I'd blasted him and changed into a rat. I was going to, but I couldn't get the chance. I'm telling you, Moony. You've got to believe me!"

The wizards grabbed him by the arms and hauled him out. Remus shut the door quickly. That was the last time he'd seen him. He missed Remus a lot. And he knew that he was out there somewhere. Maybe he was thinking about him, wondering if he was okay. He hoped that Remus thought it out and believed him. Who would Remus spend his full moons with now? How would he live without his friends that had taken so much care of him? Sirius wondered about Remus most of all.

As he watched the full moon outside of his window, he thought of his dog-form. Padfoot. Such an amazing story. He and his friends had worked so hard to become animagus so they could accompany Moony on his horrible transfigurations. That's where they got the nickname. Moony, for the moon that mocked the poor boy they had given the name. Wormtail for the worm like form of the rat's tail. Prongs for the prongs on the deer's antlers and Padfoot for the pads of a dog's foot. Sirius had always been dog-like. Loveable, loyal, easily distracted and unchangeable. Many girls had tried to "tame" the savage beast that was Sirius Black, but could not. He was too set in his own ways.

Unchangeable…

Curious. Perhaps if he was truly unchangeable, this hell hole wouldn't have made such a difference. He couldn't help, but think that there was something. Some way of getting out. If he was the Padfoot of yesterday, he could do it. If he had Prongs. He could do it.

But he _did _have Prongs. He had the stag in his heart, as corny as it was. The one that always took care of him. Sirius got up and walked over to the window. Standing on his tiptoes, he looked out at the miles of ocean and sighed. If only he was the man he was when he had his friends. Before that rat tore it apart. Before everything was ruined. He missed them. Even a small part of him missed Wormtail. The way they used to check out girls. Ditch Wormtail. Change into their animal forms when nobody was looking. How he used to run into the girl's dorm as a dog.

In dog form, Padfoot seemed invincible. He hadn't done it in so long, he had to wonder if he still could. Sirius had been so depressed, he hadn't even thought about doing it, much less, had the strength. He sat on the floor and sucked in a deep breath. Concentrating hard, Sirius willed his body to change. His never-ending headache raged, then began to quell as he seemed to become part of it. Part of his soul. Part of his Patronus. That's when he felt his bones shift. It began to hurt slightly as his spine changed position and his joints moved and creaked. It felt nice. Sort of like cracking your knuckles. It was as if he was leaving something behind. His clothes morphed into fur and clung to his skin until they became part of it. His nose and mouth elongated and became a muzzle. He was Padfoot again.

He turned in a circle and barked happily. The happiness must have brought in the dementors because the heavy stone door threw open and a wispy figure glided in. Sirius began to back up into the corner. The dementor's eyeless face scanned the room. It went right over him. That's it. It must not have seen the dog that was Sirius Black. This was amazing. Another burst of happiness overtook him. The dementor looked at him. Apparently it could feel the happiness, but didn't know where it was coming from. It couldn't see his dog form.

Perhaps he could escape…

((A/N: I hope you enjoyed it. I enjoyed writing it. Thanks for reading. I won't bore you with long author notes.))


	2. Homeless and Paranoid

The peelings fell from the potato easily as the thin, scarred hands moved over them. Two days since his last full moon and he was still feeling it in his bones. They ached. Everything ached, but most of all his heart. He knew it was the loneliness getting to him as always. It would be okay. He would be teaching soon. It was what he'd wanted to do since he got out of Hogwarts. Plus, that would mean that Lily and James' son would be a student. As a teacher, Remus could watch over him better. Do the job that Sirius was supposed to be doing.

Remus sighed deeply and leaned against the counter. Could he actually have killed the people he loved the most in the world? Remus wanted more than anything to say no, but he wasn't sure. Sirius had changed. Since they got out of school, he had began to drink more and they saw less of him. It could have been his job and the fact that if they contacted each other too much, it could be dangerous, but Remus knew there was something up. Every Order of the Phoenix meeting had been more depressing than the last. Sirius looked like he hadn't slept or shaved in days. His hair had begun to grow long as well. That was always a bad sign. Sirius liked his hair long, but once it got past his shoulders, that meant that he didn't even care enough to get it cut. After that, it was the death of the Potters. Save their son, Harry Potter. As far as anybody had known, Sirius was the secret keeper of their position. But the words he had spoken at their last meeting were terrifying.

"_Moony! Please just listen! They changed the secret keeper at the last minute to Wormtail. He was the secret keeper. He told He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. I promise you."_

Sirius's voice rang through his head as if he was standing right behind him. The knife slipped off of the potato and went right into his finger. He gasped as the pain rushed to his brain. Throwing down the bloodstained potato, he shoved his bleeding finger into his mouth and sucked on it like a child. He felt like a child. Without his friends he seemed like nothing. Tears slipped from his light blue eyes and fell down his thin cheeks.

He needed somebody, but there was no one he could go to. He'd gotten several offers from the Weasley's to come to dinner, but he couldn't. It was so awkward to sit in on a large family. Even more depressing than being alone actually. It made him wish he'd found somebody to settle down with. There were opportunities in his earlier years, but no girl wanted a sickly looking guy with scars all over him. No. They were much more interested in the handsome dark haired boys he hung around with. Remus wasn't particularly bad looking, he just was overshadowed by Sirius and James as a young man. Many girls thought he was cute, but to him, cute meant like you were a little kid. He hated it when girls said that. It was so mocking. Even if they didn't mean it to be, he felt like it was.

Picking back up the potato, the werewolf sighed and threw it in the bushes not far away. Things had to get better. There was no possible way they could get any worse. Well, perhaps that wasn't so. Maybe he could have a bad case of the sniffles. That wouldn't add to the situation one bit.

What Remus really wanted was a friend.

His last one was rotting in Azkaban as he peeled potatoes, trying his best not to get blood on them. Once he finally got them peeled, he chopped them up into small pieces and added in some rabbit meat he'd bought for cheap from the butcher on account that it was the skinniest jack rabbit he'd ever seen. Remus could do wonders with so meager wages. Right now, he was living of the little bit he'd made from his last job. He'd been fired three months in for repeated absences. It had been a muggle job too because it seemed the wizarding world didn't have a part in it for werewolves. Sometimes Remus wished he earned his living the way most werewolves did. Hunt, Kill, Murder and Steal. Their motto. They did their best to get revenge on the community for not allowing them to be part of it. Remus, as much as he hated how they were treated, was much to meek to do anything of the sort. Only was he meek, but he had too strong of beliefs.

The stew boiling in the pot began to thicken. Remus let out a long groan as he sat down on the ground next to the fire. This house could barely be called a cave. In essence, what he had done was bring his books, the small amount of clothes he owned, a pot and some blankets and made do with what he could find. A carpenter's shop left some irregular wood out for the garbage men at a nearby muggle town. Muggles were bloody wasteful, if you asked him. Remus scavenged what he could from there and made a sort of last wall for the place. Only problem was, when you wanted out you had to move a hole half of the wall as well.

He figured someone would come by and tell him to move on eventually. He was doing alright for himself now. All he could think about was now. Tomorrow, he had no idea where he'd find food to keep on living. It got cold. It got wet. It got lonely, but he didn't blow his brains out. The thought crossed his mind often, but he didn't. That was always a plus.

When it rained, the alcove in the rock kept the rain off and when it went to getting all sideways, the rain, that is, he had the wood to keep it off of him. It was warped and ruined anyway and didn't keep the rain out too well, but he couldn't complain. Actually, he could complain if he wanted to, but it didn't do any good because there was nobody around to listen to him. Even if there was someone around, they wouldn't have cared what he had to say. Remus was just another person. Another homeless guy who needed a good place to stay and a good meal. He wasn't so bad of a cook, but it's hard when you don't have anything to cook. The werewolf was as industrious as he could be, but there was only so much you could do when they only food around was grass. Oh, he'd tried to eat it, but it didn't taste to nice and it you'd be sorry in a couple hours.

That's when he heard a noise in the distance. He nearly jumped out of his boots and stood up trying to look as tough as he could. "Who's there?"

The demand went unanswered. He repeated the question and the only reply was the darkness and another rustle of leaves. His mind began to race. Remus was certain it was some sort of serial killer that was out to kill him and had a thing for short, skinny werewolves. He gripped his wand and pointed it into the darkness surrounding the fire, his blue eyes searching the surroundings. Then the hoot of an owl came. A large barn owl came flying out of a tree not to far from him. It was only a bloody owl. He held out his arm and it landed easily on his forearm. He smiled at it as it stuck out it's leg. A ratty piece of parchment was tied there. Remus pulled it off and patted it. "I'm sorry, I have nothing to give you to eat, you lovely creature. I only have my company. Perhaps I could entreat you to some rabbit stew?"

The owl ruffled it's feathers and took off, obviously upset that it had flown all that way for nothing. He untied the letter. It's yellowed paper crinkled in his small hands. He looked intently at the string that hold it on. It was generic. Not intricate at all or pretty. Just plain. By the way it looked, it seemed as though it wasn't from anybody important. Maybe just a notice that the taxes on wands were going up in a week.

Nevertheless, he unfolded it and his mouth fell open. The flyer fell on the ground and his eyes widened at the face that grinned back madly at him. Those wild eyes. That crazy stare. He growled at some guards that couldn't be seen in the picture and went back to smiling at the viewer. That handsome face was so disfigured from years in the prison. The stripped uniform and the sign he held at his chest told it all.

Sirius Black had escaped Azkaban.

There was no way. It was impossible to escape that place. His gray eyes looked blank almost, but with a crazy edge. Running a shaky hand through his hair, Remus bent down and picked it up. Inspecting the face gracing the majority of the page, he wished he hadn't gotten this flyer. He wished he had never known that Sirius had escaped. Every noise in the night was the convict hiding in the shadows, waiting to attack. Every shadow was Black, coming to get him. Oh, how he wished he never knew!

Remus settled back down and stirred his stew, trying to keep his mind off of the man he knew was coming for him. Or worse, for Harry. Trying to calm his nerves, Remus spooned himself some stew into a small bowl. He stuck the spoon in the stew. Pulling it back out, he popped it in his mouth and began to suck on the small amount still on it. His blue eyes were fixed on the fire. He was doing his best not to get paranoid, but it was hard for him. Remus was one of the most paranoid people on earth. If someone told him a ghost story, he didn't sleep for days and when he did, he dreamed about it. _Dreamed_ about it. He was a grown man and dreaming about monsters coming to kill him.

Taking a small bite of the stew, he nearly choked on it as he saw a dark figure making it's way toward him from just a bit away…


	3. Muggle Findings

((Sorry this one is a wee bit short, but it's been hectic lately and exams are coming up so this might be the last one for a while.))

The distant sound of laughter awoke the man curled up on the ground. Only he was still in his dog form. There was a group of girls not far down the beach that had already spotted him. They called out silly names like 'puppy' and 'doggy.' Sirius always found names like that odd. Especially that you never heard a guy say them.

Sirius got up slowly and trotted over to them, his tongue sticking out and his tail wagging happily. He was sore all over. He must have swam for days. Or floated at least. He was lucky to be alive and he knew it. All that doggy paddling really got to his muscles. He felt cold and lost. If he played his cards right, maybe one of these girls would find him cute enough to take home. He'd stay there for a while and then leave when he was feeling more like himself. As he trotted over to them, one girl bent down and patted her knees so he would come to her. Sirius smirked to himself and pretended to run right for her. Instead, he turned just at the right moment so that he pranced around her once, then stopped in front and barked happily.

She frowned and flipped her short brown hair out of her eyes. "C'mere, baby."

He stopped just out of her reach and patted his tail on the ground. When she tried to step closer to him, he backed up and sat down again. Getting frustrated, the girl crossed her arms and stared the dog down in a fake pout. He gave in. Sirius had a good set of puppy dog eyes himself, but he had always been a fool for them. She petted him happily and nuzzled her face in his neck. He must have smelled awful, but she didn't seem to care.

"Isn't he cute?" She looked up at the other two girls who were looking down at her like she was crazy. The blonde shook her head and the brunette grinned. "We should keep him."

"No, bad! Don't even get those sort of ideas! The landlord will have our heads on pikes before we can even get him in the door! He specifically said no pets!" The blonde that had been giving her the disapproving look before was now wagging her finger at the girl with her arms around Padfoot. These girls sort of reminded him of he and his friends. Except none of them acted at all like Wormtail. The way they interacted was very much like the marauders though. They seemed to be muggles. Their clothing screamed it anyway. The one with her arms around him had a long sleeved blouse with a sweater-vest over it (that he was getting extremely dirty) and pair of nice slacks that were rolled up past the knees. The blonde had on a sweater, a ripped pair of jeans, and a beanie. The last one had jeans on as well and a black, three-fourths sleeve turtle neck. None of them wore shoes.

A snort came from the other girl who now began to scratch the dog behind his ear. "Now, Catherine, stop it. He'll never have to know _she's_ there."

"It's a _he_, Meredith!" The girl that was snuggling him said. He barked in unison with her.

Meredith ran a hand through her shoulder length brown hair, her blue eyes uncaring. "Whatever… same thing."

"Is not! There is a distinct difference between male and female." Catherine nodded lightly and went over to the dog. She gave him a pat on the head. "Okay… we can bring him home, but you have to wash him. He smells like a dead rat, Marla."

Marla shook her head. Her chin length brown hair fell in her eyes. "Lets get him home. He looks half starved." She looked into his eyes. Her dark brown ones seemed to search his gray ones. Sirius could tell it would be hard to leave these girls already. They seemed like someone he might want to be around more often. She smirked before saying, "He's really intelligent. You can tell by looking in his eyes. They're really pretty too."

"Right. Well lets get back to the car before it gets dark. Aren't the guys supposed to come over pretty soon?" Meredith cocked an eyebrow at Marla questioningly.

"Oh, blimey! I forgot." She stood up and patted her leg for Sirius to follow. He did, of course. "We better get back pretty soon, then. They've got a key if we're not there yet. Damn… I can't believe I forgot about that completely."

Catherine snorted. "Drop me off at the library. I need to finish reading up on my thesis. Plus, I don't want to be a witness to this love-fest."

"Love-fest? What?" Meredith chuckled as a soft blush crept up on her cheeks. Poor thing was embarrassed, it seemed. Marla shook her head before ushering the lot of them off to a blue speck in the distance. Before Sirius knew it, they were racing there. He felt weak, but kept running anyway. Then, everything went black. He awoke to soft voices around him.

"What do we do? I mean… Isn't he the guy that's wanted for murder?" Marla voice was hushed.

A deep voice answered. "Something tells me we should wait until he wakes up. He doesn't look like much of a threat, actually. He just seems tattered and worn is all. What I don't get is why he was in the form of a dog… I mean… that's not physically possible."

"Yeah! I don't see why you guys are so worried about him being a murderer! He was an effing dog! I watched him change back!" Catherine's voice was shrill and stressed. "I'm not crazy am I?!"

Sirius groaned awake. There was a shuffle of feet and he opened his eyes to a tall man with a tennis racket and a slightly shorter man with a baseball bat…


	4. Lonely Werewolf

Gray eyes stared at him. Those haunting intelligent ones that for so long he found so warm, but now were cold and looking for his blood. How much he wanted to run…. His legs wouldn't budge. Sirius was getting closer and closer, a glowing wand in his large calloused hand. The terror rose in Remus' chest. Silent words formed from Sirius' mouth. Avada Kadavra. Green light over took him.

Remus jolted awake. Covered in a cold sweat, his light blue eyes were dilated with fear. He sat bolt upright and pulled his legs to his chest. Sobs began to rack his body as he buried his face in his knees. The sweat made him so cold. The draft was nearly unbearable as wind blew through the gaps in the wood he had for his last wall. He wore naught, but boxers and his pale body shone in the slight moonlight that danced through the wood. He couldn't think. Ever since the meeting with Dumbledore, he was scared out of his wits.

The only reason Dumbledore would come to visit him would have to be something serious. The figure, he was certain, was his only friend left in the world coming to kill him. It was soon obvious that it was not Sirius Black at all, but his mentor for so many years, Albus Dumbledore. The gait was unmistakable as well as the long beard that was so Merlin-esque, it was often joked that the ageless man _was _the world renown wizard. He hadn't changed. Not even in the twenty (give or take) years that Remus had been out of Hogwarts. Albus was still the same old man that he was then. There was a slight hint of intelligence in those twinkling blue eyes that may have become more prominent over the years, but Remus wasn't one to stare into eyes much. He was more of a guy that looked at the ground instead of into your eyes. His self perception was obvious.

Dumbledore's voice hadn't changed either. It was still the same calm and collected one that it was before. Always able to calm an excited student and even an adult, but it had the intensity to chastise without raising a decibel. "Don't be afraid, Remus. It's only me."

"Oh… Professor. You scared the life out of me." Remus put a hand on his heart and let out a long sigh. Setting down his bowl of stew, the werewolf got up and shook the older man's hand. "What brings you here to my home… er… cave at this hour of the night? I assume the escape of…. The convict."

Dumbledore seemed to read Remus' fear at saying his name and nodded solemnly. "Sirius Black, yes. I understand that you two were very close in school, but I don't know that he has the best intention for you after breaking out of Azkaban. You did owl the ministry when he came to your door for help. I suggest you come to Hogwarts as soon as possible. Classes will be starting soon anyway, and it would be more protected than out here in the wilderness. Though a someone that could break out of Azkaban is quite a man, I must say."

"Okay… well I'm not exactly in the best shape for going anywhere. Perhaps if I get another nights sleep I'll be okay. My cousin in London wants me to come stay with him for a couple days anyway, Professor. It will be a while before Si- Si-… He'll even be able to come out of hiding. They'll be searching for him like blood hounds. What I don't get though is how he could get past the dementors. I mean… aren't they supposed to be the ultimate guards? Only something extremely sinister could make a deal with them. You think…." Remus gulped the saliva that rose into his mouth. Could it be? Could Voldemort be back, and could he be getting back his most loyal servant first? It was so hard to think of Sirius as a follower of the He-Who-Must-Not-be-Named. All he could see was the fun-loving teenager that was always around to cheer you up. Those happy gray eyes staring seemingly into your soul. It seemed unreal to him.

"I do not know, Remus. I have no idea." He shook his head. "Anyway, just stay safe, Remus. I certainly hope that justice for that man comes soon."

And he was gone before Remus could register his departure.

As Remus sat there, his arms wrapped around his legs and sobs tearing through him, he thought about his old friend. How Sirius always knew what was wrong with you, even if you didn't know. The handsome smile that brought girls to their knees and always made you want to smile. A mischievous twinkle in his eyes showed he had a plot up his sleeve. Then there was his touchy-feely nature. He felt like he always had to have his arm around your shoulders or poking at you or rearranging that rebellious strand of hair. Remus would have done anything for the soothing touch of his last friend. Sirius was such a good person. How could he have gone to the Death Eaters? It made no sense to him.

As he sat there, the tears that were coming out in buckets slowed to a trickle down his cheeks. Remus hadn't cried since he was a boy. He felt like a git. A grown man sobbing over his fear of being killed, but it was something more than that now. It was the memory of Sirius Black that he was certain he would never see again. If he could just go back through the times of their adolescence. Maybe then he'd have his friends. Somebody. Anybody in this world that cared about him. Sirius was his first friend. He never had any as a child. He was too sickly to go outdoors and play with the neighborhood children. When he got to Hogwarts, the first person that said anything to him was that dark haired boy with the devious smirk on his good-looking face. The werewolf wished so much he had that back. That initial feeling of happiness that their first meeting sent through him. It would never come again. He was certain. It was lost forever beneath the depths of the ocean that was time. That bark-like laughter. That twinkle in his eye. That messy elegance. It was all replaced with evil laughter, a crazed eye, and a scraggly appearance. He could never have back the friend he'd honored and loved so much. The sobs came again, but this time ten-fold of the first ones. He began to cry so hard that each breath he drew in came hard and as a gasp. His nose began to drip with snot and it rose into his throat, making breathing harder still. Wiping his nose with his forearm, Remus then pushed his fingers into his temples to try and stifle the headache that came with the stress of his sobs.

After a while, they died down to whines. He hated this. He hated crying and sobbing like an idiot. Looking over at the boards, he noticed a faint light coming through them and smiled to himself. If there was one thing to look forward to, it was daybreak. Today, he would go to his cousin's house in London and have a nice sleep on a nice bed. It would be refreshing. For now though, he needed to pack. Packing was going to be easy as usual. He had so little it would take about thirty minutes tops. He'd just leave the boards and bring his pots, clothes and books. The packing itself took about twenty minutes and he was on his way to the muggle town just five miles down the road. It was a refreshing walk, but after he got his ticket and found a seat on the train, he was out cold. Everything was a blur until the train whistle blew as they pulled into King's Cross. As he stepped off the train, the cloud-filtered sunlight streamed down on him through the glass ceiling. He remembered again the first time he met Sirius Black.

He was just stepping through the barrier that was the entrance to Platform 9¾ and bid his mum goodbye. She gave him a soft rustle of the hair and his father gave a swift hug. Young Remus made his way to crowd of students trickling onto the train. Taking a look back, he saw his father with his arm around his mother and the worried look on her face. Remus was so frail. He thought he saw a tear leak down her cheek before his father ushered her off. He almost hadn't been able to come to Hogwarts. His mother had been fretting over him for days and days. It had been like walking on thin ice around her lately because anything would set her off into hysterics.

A large Slytherin shoved him roughly. He landed on his butt and gave the bully an angry scowl. The boy reminded Remus of a gorilla. The Slytherin returned the look and went back to pushing his way through the crowd unsuccessfully. Before he could even attempt to get up, a hand thrust itself into his face. Remus looked up into a grinning visage. "Thanks…" Remus muttered shyly. "That was completely uncalled for."

The boy smiled and turned around to the Slytherin. He gave him a shove in the same way that he had given Remus one. The Slytherin fell on his butt as well and let out a gasp as he landed. Getting up quickly, he called Sirius a less than kind name and scurried to get on the train. He seemed to be hiding tears.

"Now you can thank me. What a jerk." He nodded and held out his hand to shake. "The name is Sirius Black."

"Remus Lupin." He shook Sirius' hand, nodding his thank you.

From then on, it was always like that. If somebody messed with him, they messed with Sirius. And not just Sirius either, but James as well. He sighed as he made his way slowly out of the station. Memories were so annoying. They always made him feel so down in the dumps about being alone. It seemed like that was all he had left anymore.

Awakening from his torturing thoughts, he heard a familiar voice. There was a young man leaning against the wall when he got out of the place. "Oi! Remus! Cousin Remus!"

He smiled at the young man. This was obviously his cousin that he hadn't seen since he was a teenager and his cousin was a kid. He seemed a lot less awkward now and a lot more handsome. His nearly black hair blew in the wind and his freckled skin shone in the sun. He was tall and had a nice build. Remus made his way over to him and held out his hand to shake the man's.

"Good to see you, Kenneth." Remus shook his hand heartily.

"And you, Remus." Kenneth looked Remus over and frowned. "You look like hell. Let's get you to my house and get you cleaned up. Then we can go grab some brunch. Do you need to borrow some clothes? I can give you some if you need 'em. I just got a job at a nice law firm so I've got more clothes than I need."

Remus nodded and smacked him on the back once. "Probably. I don't think I have anything that isn't stained or ripped. I was worried as to how I was going to get clothes for work. I've got a job at Hogwarts, you know. Wait… A law firm? Isn't that a muggle job? What would possess you to get a job at a place like that? I mean…"

"Yeah, I know, but they pay well and I've met this really nice girl there named Catherine. And this guy. His name is Peter. We hang out a lot. Since I moved here it's been hard to find friends. They let me hang out with their friends. It's pretty cool." Kenneth shoved his hands in his pockets. "They're good people. Muggles, but good people."

The two talked as they strolled to a small café not far away. When they got in, they went up a small flight of stairs after saying hello to an old woman at the counter. Kenneth explained that she let wizards use her second story for transportation out of the busy street. There were businesses like this all over the place in England. It was a new bill wittily named the 'wizard transportation act.' Once they used the floo network to get to Ken's flat, he showed Remus to the bathroom and he began to take a shower. The young man went over to the phone and began to check the messages. Remus stared into the mirror and looked himself over. He did look like hell. Pushing the hair from his eyes, he let out a long sigh. Voices of cultured telemarketers echoed throughout the flat from the answering machine. Then a panicked voice came. Remus couldn't help, but hear the words.

"Ken… this is Peter… The girls have got that murder that's all over the news in their house. He was a dog, they say. I figure you might know something about this. We've got him locked in the basement and we aren't sure what to do. Call me back, please."

His words made Remus' blood run cold. The way they talked about the man he could tell two things. First, it was definitely Sirus Black, and second, they were definitely muggles…


	5. Compassion

((Sorry for it's shortness… I'm working on another right now, and I liked the place I ended the chapter. I still haven't decided if I'm going to put another Remus chapter before this or not… we shall see…))

The loud crash of the door startled the muggles on the inside as well as Remus Lupin who had accompanied Kenneth to their house. After he'd gotten the message, he'd yelled through the bathroom door to Remus of what he had to do. A few seconds of silence and Remus burst through the door willing to help. He couldn't let his cousin do it alone. When he'd said something about owling the ministry, the werewolf urged him not to. It would be best if they dealt with it as best they could and analyze the situation before calling them in. Secretly, Remus wanted to see Sirius again. He was so afraid, but he wanted to see him because he needed to know if what he said that night in front of his house was true.

"_Moony! Please just listen! They changed the secret keeper at the last minute to Wormtail. He was the secret keeper. He told He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. I promise you."_

There it went again… with hearing Sirius as plain as day. He wished he could get that deep, rushed voice out of his mind. He hated thinking about that night. The night where, perhaps, he could have helped Sirius. Wait… What was he thinking? He gave away Lily and James' secret. He killed Peter Pettigrew. He was NOT to be trusted. There was no way he could begin to believe that Sirius was his Padfoot anymore. Sirius Black. Convict and murderer. Not Padfoot. Not anymore. Remus should have allowed Kenneth to owl the authorities when he'd asked to. This was insane…

A tall blond stood up and strode over to Kenneth and Remus. He had light blue eyes that surveyed the two. "He's down in the basement. I thought you might know something about this… You'd know more about it that we would anyway. I'm so glad you got here. Marla was the one that suggested we call you. She said it wasn't something that we, or our police, are capable of dealing with. I'm not sure what that means…"

It was then that Remus noticed three other girls and another guy in the room. The guy that had walked up to them, Remus identified as Peter by the voice. He gave a soft nod, realizing that Remus was there only now. He introduced himself and everyone else in the room. Catherine got up and hugged Kenneth. "You're going to take care of this, aren't you?" She looked panicked. "I tried to call the police, but they didn't believe me."

"That's not unreasonable, Cat." Kenneth grinned, but his face quickly changed to an expression of worry. "We need to do this. In the basement, right?"

"Yeah." Peter showed them to the door.

Kenneth glanced at Remus and nodded gently before opening the door. It was musty; the old smell of the place made Remus feel faint. The sun had just set and the small amount of light in the sky didn't help them see at all. Kenneth reached for the light switch. It clicked on and off, but no light graced their way. Burned out. They stepped down into the darkness, taking each step as if it were their last. It very well could have been. Remus shut the door after them, lest Sirius should kill them while they were down there and try to escape that way. This made the light even more scant in the already pitch black basement. The only sound Remus could hear was his own heart pounding like the tattoo of rhythmic drums into his hypersensitive ears. Fear. It crawled over him like a cockroach. Everything creak in the downward stairs made him jump out of his skin. Chills ran up his spine. Sirius Black was going to kill him. Here. In a muggles' basement. The thought was depressing. Finally he made it down the stairs, but it was no consolation. Somewhere, in this thick darkness, was a killer. Somebody who would take no mercy on him like he'd taken no mercy on his friends. He held his wand in a steel grip. It's small lumos charm on the end made things only more eerie. Silence, save for the beating in his ears from his heart. He went to his right, Kenneth to the left. It was much too quiet.

He hovered the light over shelves, a minifridge, old records, an old couch and bed that had obviously been slept in recently. He wondered if Sirius had slept there. Suddenly, there was a loud crash. Kenneth let out a yowl of pain. Remus froze. He quickly recovered and ran over to where the scream of pain had come from.

"Don't worry, Remus… I ran into a bloody step ladder. Who puts up a ladder in the middle of the effing basement?" Kenneth gripped his knee and looked up at Remus.

Remus frowned deeply. "Somebody who wants to get out."

They both looked up at the window and saw it was open. Realizing that there was no point in looking, he helped Kenneth up. He was already gone.

Only minutes before, Sirius had been curled up under the covers of the worn bed. It smelled like mold. In fact, the whole basement smelled like mold. This was going to be wonderful. He'd just gotten out of Azkaban, and now here he was, being held captive by muggles who were probably going to call the police. Why they hadn't already arrived, he had no clue. He peeked out of the blankets to the small window much to high for him to reach. It was day outside. He got out of the bed and began to push it toward the window, hoping it would make him tall enough to pull himself out. There were no doors to the outside except for one that was up the stairs, and he just knew that there was somebody on the other side of it waiting for him to try to break out. The first shove he gave it made it squeak rather loudly. He laid back down quickly. Sirius was so very hungry… He wished that he had at least gotten some food before he changed back to his human form.

He heard the door open from the top of the stairs. Frozen. He lay there as though if he didn't move whoever it was wouldn't see him. "Hey… Sirius… Isn't that your name?"

It was Marla. He peeked out from the sheets to look at her. Why would she possibly want to talk to him? He was a murder, apparently. Sirius nodded his head roughly. She looked very dark. Almost like a dementor. He scooted farther back on the bed.

"Alright… Well I brought you some food. Eat it now though. Somebody is coming here to get you right now so you'll want to hurry. I wouldn't let them call the police… Well, Catherine got to the phone, but they didn't believe her because she called them lots of times for murders and monsters and stuff. Catherine believes that the guy that lives next door to us is a vampire and she'll call the police on him regularly. I tell you, that girl is more paranoid that anything. I think he is though…" She smirked. "See… I know you didn't do anything you're accused of. You wanna know why?"

Sirius gave her a puzzled look and opened the container of food. He began to eat. It was in a Tupperware container and consisted of a big slab of meat and mashed potatoes. He began to shove small pieces of mashed potatoes in his mouth quickly as though it could be taken from him any minute. The warming feeling in his stomach was amazing. He managed to mumble out a few words between bites. "How would a muggle like you know something like that?"

"You see… that's where you're wrong, friend. I'm a squib. The mistake of my father that his fellow _death eaters_ will not let him live down. When they took you in for the crime, I specifically remember him laughing hysterically at the prophet. My mother asked him why he was laughing, and he said something along the lines of 'wouldn't know a real death eater if he kissed them right on the face, now would they?'" She went over to a dark corner of the basement and got a ladder out that Sirius hadn't seen before. Marla set it up next to the window. "I would hate to see an innocent man go to back to Azkaban for a crime he didn't commit in the first place. Have a good life, Sirius Black. And watch out for people."

By this time, Sirius had shoved all the food in his mouth and hurried up the latter. He gave Marla one last look before climbing through the window. It led to an empty back yard. He stuck his head back in to tell her goodbye, but she was already gone. He quickly changed into Padfoot and made for a hole in the back fence.

As Sirius was leaving from the back, Remus Lupin was entering from the front and he couldn't have been more nervous_._


End file.
